The Unknown Human Health Legacy of Nuclear Weapons Testing

Abstract

For nearly half a century, the United States and the Soviet Union were locked in a fierce battle although no shots were actually fired. Starting in the 1940s, both started developing their arsenal of nuclear weapons, in preparation for an all-out nuclear war. The U.S. government primarily used a patch of land in Nye, NV, that was formerly a military base, to conduct their tests. It was flat with few animals nearby. It seemed far from civilization and wasn't adjacent to any water streams, which the government thought would minimize the spread of contamination that would be generated from the above-ground blasts. In other words, the site seemed to be perfect.